Cell Phone Signal Boosters Vs Femtocells - Which One Is Right For You?

Ever missed a call because your phone was in and out of service and it only rang once before going to voicemail?  Constantly having to go to windows or outside to make a call? Tired of playing the "Can you hear me now?" game?  With more and more people opting to do away with their landline, reliable call quality and carrier service has never been more important.  So what can you do to improve your reception and stop dropping calls?

The most popular options are cell phone signal boosters and Femtocells.  Without going into too much detail, by the end of this article you should have enough information to decide which one is right for you.

Verizon Cell

Let us start by defining the two technologies.  Most wireless cell phone signal boosters (also called amplifiers and repeaters) work by capturing the signal outside, amplifying it, and then redistributing it inside.  This is done through 3 major pieces: an outside antenna (either directional or omni-directional), the amplifier, and the inside antenna (either directional or omni-directional).  The outside signal can be weak or strong, but must be present in order for the booster to operate properly.  In general, the weaker the signal outside, the more gain the amplifier needs to provide in order to offer adequate coverage inside.  Femtocells are basically miniature cell phone towers, about the size of a wireless router, that are provided by your wireless carrier and are installed in your home to provide coverage of up to a 40' radius.  They are essentially a Wi-Fi router for cellular and PCS frequencies.  Information is transmitted wirelessly from your phone to the femtocell, then from the femtocell to the carrier via your broadband internet connection.

Now let's get down to the purpose of this article.  The easiest way to decide which product is right for you is to take a look at the comparisons below.

Connectivity

Booster:  Dual Band models work with virtually all carriers except Nextel and other iDEN push-to-talk networks, although there are boosters made specifically for Nextel. Femtocell:  Only works with one specific service provider.  Ex. You are a Verizon Wireless subscriber. Provided there is little coverage by all carriers in your current location, installing a Verizon Network Extender will help you out but don't plan on your AT&T friends raving about excellent coverage when they stop over to watch the game.

Data

Booster: Dual Band models work with data plans for all carriers using 850/1900 MHz for their data.  This is most carriers, but does not include T-Mobile 3G Femtocell:  Supported data rates vary by carrier. Some femtocells do not support data at all.  Ex.  Verizon's Network Extender currently only supports 1X CDMA, not EVDO or 3G.  Generation 1 of Sprint's Airwave only supports 1X CDMA, not EVDO or 3G.  AT&T's microcell supports 3G data, but only works with 3G phones.

Multiple Users

Booster:  Most dual band wireless models support more than a handful of users so everyone can be talking or surfing at the same time. Femtocell:  Depends on the carrier.  Sprint's AIRWAVE allows up to 3 simultaneous users. Verizon's Network Extender supports up to 3 simultaneous users. AT&T's Microcell supports up to 4 simultaneous users.

Bandwidth

Booster:  N/A Femtocell:  Prepare to allot anywhere from 40Kbps to 300kbps of your upload and download bandwidth depending  on the number of active calls / data sessions.

Cost

Booster:  Basic Dual Band home coverage kits  can start as low as 5    Femtocell:  Anywhere ranging from free  (with a subscription to unlimited calling), to with a /mo fee, to a 0 one time fee.

Installation

Booster:  Installation of most cell phone signal boosters can be completed in anywhere from 1  to 4 hrs..  Mounting the outside antenna, mounting the inside antenna and running the cabling between everything is the most time consuming.  Amplifier and internal antenna placement are completely flexible. Femtocell:  Physically easier to install - requiring just a simple Ethernet connection to your existing router. However, most require a GPS lock in order to activate and confirm location, so it is advised to install next to a window.  However, it is also advised that they be placed in a central location for best coverage.  Raise your hand if you have windows located in the center of your home?

Boot Up Time

Booster:     N/A - once the amplifier is powered on you can make and receive calls. Femtocell:  Some femtocells require up to 60 minutes to set up and stabilize for the first time.  Subsequent power cycles take 10-15 minutes to stabilize.

Call Hand-Off

Booster:  N/A - a cell phone signal booster is an extension of the outside tower so you are essentially already connected to it when making and receiving calls.  There is no hand-off to take place.  If you are connected to a tower as you're driving up your street, you'll be connected to the same tower once in your home (just with a stronger signal) Femtocell:  Seamless call transfer to the tower as you leave the femtocell coverage area, but you're going to have to hang up and re-dial if you're entering the coverage area.

In summary, if you live in an area with absolutely no cell coverage, only affiliate with people who are using the same carrier as you, don't mind giving up some of your already-paid-for broadband bandwidth, will never have a need for 3 or more people to be on the phone at the same time and don't mind saying "I'll have to call you back, I'm at home now" then a femtocell might just be the solution for you.  However, if you want to provide great cell and data coverage to just about anyone who enters your home (regardless of carrier), value your already precious bandwidth, and don't mind rolling up your sleeves for a few hours to do the installation, then an installed Cell Phone Signal Booster may be the right solution for you.

Cell Phone Signal Boosters Vs Femtocells - Which One Is Right For You?

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Cell Phone Signal Boosters and 4G: What You Need To Know

The term 4G appears to be the "buzz" word for Q4 of 2010. So what is it? 4G refers to the fourth generation of cellular wireless standards. It is an heir to 3G and 2G standards, with the goal of providing a wide range of data rates, up to ultra-broadband (gigabit), to mobile as well as stationary users. Pre-4G technology is currently being deployed in a number of major US markets. The purpose of this article is to inform you of what 4G is and is not and how cell phone signal boosters will integrate with 4G.

The term 4G is a little confusing, but I will try to break it down as simply as possible. As defined by ITU-R (International Telecommunication Union - Radiocommunications sector) 4G is to provide data rates of up to 100Mbps for mobile devices and up to 1Gbps for stationary devices. Current networks marketed as 4G are not truly 4G. Verizon's 4G LTE network, which is to roll out in 38 major cities by the end of the year and cover roughly 100 million people, will only support 5-12Mbps on the downlink. While this is a far cry from the required 100Mbps to be considered true 4G it is still roughly 5 to 10 times better than the average 1Mbps downlink currently available with EV-DO. Sprint's 4G network, based on WiMAX, offers realistic download speeds of roughly 4 Mbps. Again, not true 4G. True 4G speeds are not expected to be reached until the release of LTE-Advanced for Verizon, AT&T, and others or WiMAX 2 for Sprint. These true 4G technologies are still in ITU approval process are not expected to be deployed for at least another 2-3 years.

Verizon Cell

Thinking about purchasing a dual band cell phone signal booster but not sure about how 4G will fit into the picture? Because almost all commercially sold dual band cell phone signal boosters today work in the 850 and 1900 MHz range, they will not work with emerging 4G LTE or WiMAX technologies, which are 700 MHz (Verizon 4G and eventually AT&T 4G) and 2.5GHz (Sprint 4G) respectively. They will also not work with the AWS 1700MHZ and 2100MHz frequencies used by T-Mobile 3/4G. However, here are some points to consider if you're thinking about purchasing a cell phone signal booster but are on the fence about how 4G fits into the picture:
4G and the new frequency bands will be used mostly for data, with voice still being transmitted in the 850MHz or 1900MHz range. If you use your phone as a phone and don't have a data plan or use Wi-Fi for data, you don't have to worry about the booster not working or becoming obsolete. This may not be the case with all carriers so it is best to call your carrier and see what frequencies they use for voice in your specific area. 4G is not compatible with 3G or older phones. You will need to purchase a new phone if you plan on taking advantage of 4G data speeds. However, 4G phones will be backwards compatible with 3G networks, so if you travel outside of your 4G city you will still have access to 3G data speeds. Slow 4G rollout. According to Verizon's website, they do not plan on having 4G coverage to match their existing 3G coverage for another 3 years. If you live in a rural area and don't currently have 3G coverage, you shouldn't expect 4G coverage for at least another 2 - 3 years if at all. AT&T is still focusing on upgrading its 3G network and does not plan on rolling out 4G LTE until sometime in 2011, and just like with Verizon, you'd better plan on waiting a while longer if you don't live in a major metropolitan area. Limited 4G phone selection. Most of the demand for 4G is coming from businesses, not consumers. With that in mind, carriers will be focusing on developing reliable 4G laptop solutions before focusing on affordable 4G phones for consumers. Expect maybe 1 or 2 phone models per carrier to choose from until 4G has been fully deployed.

If you came across this article you more than likely do not live in a major metropolitan area, as big cities generally have excellent cell phone coverage, and you wouldn't be searching for information on cell phone signal boosters. So you'd like to purchase an installed cell phone signal booster, but want to make sure that you're not going to have to replace your 0+ investments in another couple years? It is safe to say that if you do not live in a major metropolitan area and you do not currently have 3G in your area, or it took your carrier a couple years to get 3G coverage to you, a dual band 850MHz/1900MHz cell phone signal booster will not become obsolete any time soon.

Additionally, while there are band specific amplifiers on the market, I am currently not aware of any tri-band or quad-band boosters that will work with all carriers and all data technologies. Inevitably, as 4G LTE and WiMAX start to catch on, cell phone signal booster manufacturers will start developing compatible boosters. You simply can't defeat physics and no matter what new cell phone technology emerges there will always be a need for cell phone signal boosters for some people.

Unfortunately, if you plan on jumping on the 4G bandwagon as soon as it comes to your area and find that your signal strength isn't what you hoped it would be there currently isn't much you can do to improve your 4G data. You'll just have to wait until cell phone booster manufacturers release an affordable multi-band booster. On the plus side, if you already have a dual band booster installed in your home, the cabling used to connect your antennas to your amplifier will be compatible with 4G boosters. Just purchase a new 4G booster and antennas (once available) that are specified for your existing cable (usually either 75 Ohm Coax or 50 Ohm Coax) and you're good to go. There is no need to spend hours running new cable.

If you would like to learn more about cell phone signal boosters, please check out the author resource box.

Cell Phone Signal Boosters and 4G: What You Need To Know

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